Experts warn of health hazards associated with water releases

The fresh water rushing down the Caloosahatchee River from Lake Okeechobee does more than make our coastline murky.

Leading environmental experts warn the dirty water could also bring a potential health hazard.

Visitors on Sanibel Causeway Wednesday afternoon said the shorelines were not too inviting.

"It is not very pretty. We were surprised when we got here," said Cris Lewin.

Lewin and her sister-in-law Nikki Gordon told us you can't even see what you're stepping into off our shores.

At first glance, the water just seemed discolored. Environmentalists counter it is polluted and when you start to examine what is actually in the water, you realize why the Caloosahatchee River was once called one of the most endangered waterways in the United States.

Rae Ann Wessel with the Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation told us the billions of gallons of fresh water wash in potentially harmful nutrients and chemicals.

"People should be cautious," said Wessel. "This is water that has a history. It has nitrogen and phosphorus. It has pesticides, herbicides, oils and greases."

She explained not a drop of the water gets treated before being dumped into the Caloosahatchee River unlike water sent south into the Everglades National Park.

South Florida Water Management officials said Lake Okeechobee and the Caloosahatchee River are monitored for nutrient levels. They said some parts of the estuary remain in poor health while other areas are bouncing back given the slowdown in releases.